Action at plate boundaries

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Convergent boundary:

actively deforming region where 2 (or more) tectonic plates toward one another
As a result of pressure, friction, and plate material melting in the mantle,
earthquakes and volcanoes are common near convergent boundaries.

When plates move towards one another, they form either a subduction zone,
or a continental collision.

In a subduction zone, the subducting plate, normally a plate with oceanic crust,
moves beneath the other plate (either oceanic or continental crust.)

During collisions between two continental plates, large mountain ranges, such as the Himalayas are formed.

{ adapted from Wikipedia, Convergent boundary }

What happens when two continental plates converge? Mountain building
{ http://geologycafe.com/class/chapter3.html }

The state of balance, or equilibrium, which sections of the earth’s lithosphere (whether continental or oceanic crust) are thought ultimately to achieve when the vertical forces upon them remain unchanged. The lithosphere floats upon the semifluid asthenosphere below. If a section of lithosphere is loaded, as by ice, it will slowly subside to a new equilibrium position; if a section of lithosphere is reduced in mass, as by erosion, it will slowly rise to a new equilibrium position.
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